


Lying to Yourself

by Forget_About_Me



Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Desperation, Episode: The Day of the Doctor, Gen, Internal Conflict, Omorashi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-02
Updated: 2019-06-02
Packaged: 2020-04-06 07:17:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,553
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19057873
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Forget_About_Me/pseuds/Forget_About_Me
Summary: It's impossible to hide something from your future self when he remembers itin which The Doctor confronts himself about his bad habits, a bit more literal than you would initially think





	Lying to Yourself

**Author's Note:**

> Yeah... first of all, I want to apologize for not posting stories very often. I'll blame my busy life and my inability off using the English language, which leaves me often stuck at one sentence for hours.  
> I do want to say that I'm still working on that one long fic that requires a lot of world-building, not really but I turned it into that, which I mentioned earlier. I'm finally done with the world building of that mostly and am about to go on to the actual omo part, current stats is about 9k words. Please stay tuned for that fic. All I'll say is that it has a slightly similar tone as this fic.  
> Anyway, I don't really remember how I came up with this little idea, it just came to me as I was brainstorming prompts with myself. Mentally... I don't have access to a time machine so I can't really meet my future/past self. And even if I would, I doubt I would be discussing Doctor Who omo prompts with myself.  
> This fic didn't entirely go where I was planning it to go, mostly because I deviated from the original conversation I had roughly planned. But I guess it works well enough. Please either ignore or point out weirdly worded sentences and such. I did have some trouble wording things rightly. Also, it's actually a nightmare to distinguish several incarnations of The Doctor in the same scene, which is something I already knew as I have done that before. I hope it's clear enough though.  
> Hope you enjoy.

The Eleventh Doctor looked on as his previous incarnation made yet another lap around their cell in the Tower of London. He didn't have to guess what was making his other self so restless, he could clearly remember everything up until now from Ten's perspective. He could clearly remember feeling extremely uncomfortable, and it hadn't been caused by the presence of his other incarnations. Okay, maybe a bit.

Sure, the presence of his other incarnations had caused a bit of that discomfort, but it hadn’t been the main cause. That had been his bladder.

The current incarnation of the Doctor remembered being with Elizabeth for a week before today’s event, trying to catch the Zygon he had suspected her of being. There wouldn’t have been a problem if he had been allowed to have a bit more privacy than he had received in those past days.Over the past couple of days, if Elizabeth hadn’t been with him there had at least been one of her guards. He hadn’t been too bothered by this, he had never been that big on privacy, to begin with. However, Eleven remembered realising a potential problem of not having any privacy at all, a couple of days after arriving. There really was only one thing where he cared about his privacy in any way.

_ He absolutely despised it when people knew that he needed to pee. _

He hadn’t forgotten to use the loo before he left the TARDIS to explore Tudor England. He had had too many incidents in these kinds of times for his liking, therefore he had started to take a bit more precautions when he visited these times, reducing the chance that he would be caught short by a need for the (non-existent) toilet. 

To be honest, it really had been Martha that had encouraged him to go before leaving to be sure that he wouldn’t need to later at an inconvenient time and it had kinda stuck. Not really though, he would think about it less than half of the time that he went out. But she had influenced his behaviour somewhat.

However, considering how long he had stayed with Elizabeth already, it didn’t really matter whether he had gone before arriving any more. After he had realised that he was given no privacy whatsoever he had found himself worrying about needing to relieve himself. Sure, he hadn’t needed to go at the point of the revelation but he had found himself dreading the need after he realised that he wouldn’t be able to take care of it.

Sure enough, his bladder had announced itself the day before meeting his other incarnations. He had felt the first indications during the afternoon walk with the Queen.

During that night, as he had expected, he hadn’t had the chance to void. He had been sharing a room with Elizabeth, had been for the last few days, they had been alone in the room and she was fast asleep, but still, he hadn’t been able to go. The door was guarded, so he wouldn’t be able to sneak out, to the TARDIS. He had disregarded the chamber pot as it would mean Liz finding out about it. He didn’t want the bloody queen of England finding out about something so  _ private _ .

The current incarnation of The Doctor sighed slightly at the memory, he had come a long way since then. Sure, he was still uncomfortable about speaking up about it, but he had learned,  _ the hard way _ , that sometimes it was necessary to just admit to the need.

He doubted he would ever completely get over his shyness, that had been so completely ingrained into him since his childhood, but he had learned to manage it better.

The Eleventh Doctor looked at his younger self, shaking himself out of his thoughts. It didn't matter how he was dealing with it now. The fact that his past self was in trouble mattered.

He had never realised just how obvious he was about it. No wonder people always figured out that he needed to go.

He sighed before addressing the younger man. “Just go in the corner.” He instructed expecting his other self to argue. He wasn’t disappointed.

The Tenth Doctor stopped in his tracks to stare at the elder, feeling a blush come up.

“What do you mean?” He asked innocently, despite knowing exactly what the other meant.

Eleven just rose an eyebrow at him. Ten shifted uncomfortably on the spot, both from being stared at and from the fullness in his bladder.

From the corner of his eyes, he noticed that the incarnation of himself that he hated the most was listening adeptly, obviously trying to figure out what they were discussing.

He hated the situation. His companions knowing was one thing, something he also hated but less, mostly because they were pretty open about it themselves. But having his other incarnations knowing felt too closely as other Time Lords knowing and he liked that even less.

“I am fine.” He mumbled, despite it not being true at all.

The elder narrowed his eyes at him “It's been 22 hours and 37 minutes.” he pointed out.

Ten failed to completely hide his wince at the mention. He had forgotten that the other man had been him several hundred years back and therefore did have the memories of how he had gotten in this position. He noticed the look of understanding in the youngest of the room and felt himself wishing that he could sink through the floor.

It wasn't really a surprise that the other figured it out, the eldest hadn't really worded it subtle. There weren't a lot of things one would do in a corner and the mention of how long he had been needing to go had only narrowed it down for the youngest in the room.

He eyed the corner, which had obviously been used for that purpose before. He shifted his weight slightly.

“I can wait until something a bit more appropriate shows up.“ He said slowly.

“Do I have to point out the rule of thumb we learned as a kid?” Eleven started exasperated.

Ten shook his head, he knew exactly what his other self was referring to. It was something his mum had told him back when she had been potty training him,  _ not something he was keen on remembering _ . She had told him that a Time Lord or Lady could generally hold their bladders for a maximum of 24 hours after feeling a need to go. However, after 22 hours the bladder became unreliable. This was why the need was considered desperate after the 22 hours were hit.

“I've got another hour or so, I'll be fine.” He insisted.

The Eleventh Doctor frowned at that. There was truth in that statement, in his previous incarnation he had always been at the upper bound of the average limit. He would generally be closer to the 24 hours than the 22 hours when he reached his limit, Of course, it wasn't really a good thing that he had the experience to know that and it also wasn't a good idea to be depending on your personal maximum limit.

“Did you forget about our little Zygon problem!” The elder exclaimed. “Do you really think that we can sort that out within that hour you claim to have?”

“Err... well, I was thinking I could sneak off somewhere.” Ten rubbed his neck awkwardly, shifting on the spot in the hope of getting some pressure of his bladder. “Besides we might figure it out within the hour.” He looked slightly hopeful.

Eleven knew that the other was trying everything so he wouldn't have to go in the corner. The elder could understand that. Peeing in a corner wasn't exactly high on dignity. But it was the only realistic option for his past self. The other was going to have to accept it. It was his own fault that he was stuck in this situation. If he had been a little more open about it he could've easily gone in the TARDIS when he had been there with Elizabeth earlier that day, he probably even could have made up some other excuse so he could sneak off.

“Yes, because you have been so successful with sneaking off earlier when the Zygons  _ weren't a problem yet!”  _ He exclaimed. “And should I mention your success at sneaking off 37 years from now.”

The Tenth Doctor winched at the mention of his near accident during his first trip with Martha.

The War Doctor had considered involving himself in the discussion but he saw that the oldest had it under control so he just enjoyed the show, despite not knowing half of the things that were being mentioned.

“Also, while you might be right that we might sort out the Zygons within the hour, though I doubt it,” Eleven continued. “I'd like to point out, that we also need to figure out why the hell we are here together. There is no way both will be done within the hour.” He narrowed his eyes at him. “So _ you  _ are going to go  _ now _ .” He stated in a tone that left no room to argue.

Ten hesitated, crossing his legs slightly, he knew that his future self was right, he would be in deep trouble if he didn't go now, actually, he already was, but he really hated the idea of going in the corner. Though his bladder was rather excited about the idea. It would effectively mean going on the floor,  _ inside!  _ Besides, he had company, and while he was perfectly capable of it, he absolutely hated peeing in front of others.

The eldest remembered the thoughts the other was having, and if he was honest with himself he still agreed with them. But decided to push those feelings away, the time for choices was over for his younger self.

“Technically, you're completely alone in here, if that helps.” He pointed out, it was true, they were all the same man after all.

“Doesn't really feel like it.” The younger mumbled, eyeing the corner. “But I think that thought kinda helps.” He admitted, he considered if there were any options besides the corner. If he only had remembered to replace the bottle he had used back in The Library, he, unfortunately, had only disposed of it afterwards. He looked up at the elder at the thought. “Don't you hav...”

“No, I also don't have one on me.” The other man interrupted, Clara had needed the one he usually carried on him about a week back when they had been locked for way too long in a cell and he hadn't found a new one yet. “There is nothing  _ else! _ Now for Christ’s sake,  _ go in the corner before I make you!” _ he exclaimed, done with wasting time they should be spending on figuring out their escape.

The Tenth Doctor dropped his shoulders in defeat, he knew himself well enough to know that that wasn't an empty threat, regeneration withstanding. If he didn't go of his own accord now, the elder would genuinely guide him to the corner and make sure he went, as if he was a  _ toddler _ . He was only a couple of millennia too old for that, not that the other man would care.

He stared a couple more seconds at the elder before slowly making his way towards the corner, already fumbling with the fastenings of his trousers. Even without the threat, this really was his only option, though part of him still had the hope that he would be able to sneak off later. Not that it mattered anymore now he was using that corner.

He supposed it was a small comfort that only he himself would know that he needed to resort to something like this.

He pulled himself out as he reached the corner, relaxing his muscles as he aimed at the wall. He let out a deep breath at the very welcome and needed relief.

The Eleventh Doctor smiled slightly as the memories on how good that wee had felt filtered back in. He kept getting the memories from the previous incarnations back a few seconds after the event had happened, it was slightly disorienting if he was honest, but he was managing. He wondered slightly why he didn't get the memories of his youngest self, not that he really was complaining, he doubted that he could manage two foreign memory streams at the same time. He suspected that him not getting the memories was linked with the fact that the War Doctor seemed to know what was going on.

He shook his head slightly to get rid of the thoughts, before going back to carving the activation code for UNIT's vortex manipulator in the pillar he was standing next to.

Ten was having similar thoughts as his future self as he was taking care of his need, he was also wondering why he couldn't remember the events from his past self.

He sighed as he zipped everything back up, he would probably find that out eventually.

He walked back towards the pillar his future self was working on. He still found himself wondering if he had made the right decision by using the corner, what if he could actually have sneaked of or something for a better option.

“Like stated before, I doubt you would've had the chance.” The elder broke through his thoughts. “You got way too close to your limit already, you wouldn't want to bet on that. But if you really want to know if you would've had the chance. Try finding an opportunity where you could’ve sneaked off in the next hour.” he suggested.

“I suppose that's not a bad idea. Thanks.” He smiled slightly.

“You know I technically just helped myself.” Eleven chuckled. “This is such a weird day.”

“Don't I know it.” The younger agreed.

* * *

Everything had been sorted, the Zygons now had a peace treaty with the humans and Gallifrey was safe. They were in the national gallery and the War Doctor had just left.

The Tenth Doctor turned to the Eleventh.

“You know, I did look for one after you suggested it. But I failed to find anything.” He told the man. He had really tried but everything that had been happening had been too hectic for him to ever be able to sneak off. Which thankfully had been fine because he had gone in the Tower of London. No matter how degrading that had felt.

“Yeah, that's not a surprise.” The elder replied.

“No, not really.” He agreed. “You were right.”

He noticed Clara looking curiously at them, obviously wondering what they were talking about.

“Anyway, I won't remember either, so you might as well tell me.” He started.

After the Tenth Doctor had also left, Clara turned towards her Doctor.

“What were you two talking about?” She asked him. “What had he been looking for.”

The Doctor smiled secretly. “Nothing important.”

“It did sound important, or he wouldn’t have mentioned it.” She pointed out.

“I guess you could call it an internal argument.” He looked at her. “Nothing you need to worry about.”

She nodded sceptically but left it at that. Sensing and accepting that it was a private matter.

**Author's Note:**

> Well, when I originally came up with the idea I didn't think of where this would fit in in the actual episode. And after consulting the episode transcript and the actual episode, I realised that there actually was a rather short but unspecified time window for them to be in the tower, I have the feeling it was too short to actually fit in this _' scene '_. So please just pretend it fits in there, this technically is a small AU to allow for the changes I felt necessary to the episode to make this plot work. And before you ask, no, not all changes were completely necessary. If I had really tried I could've kept it canon-compliant but I couldn't be bothered. *smiles innocently*  
> Also, I know the War Doctor was mostly ignored in this conversation. I had a hard time putting him in this and as you see kinda failed. I like to pretend that he was just busied himself with the moment and didn't really pay attention to the other two after a certain point in their conversation, feeling as if it wasn't important for him.

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Five Lying Doctors](https://archiveofourown.org/works/19093102) by [orphan_account](https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account)




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